Adaptation: An Advanceshipping Story
by barren176
Summary: On the day of Delia's wedding, Gary Oak comes back to town and sparks an interest in May. Ash seems to have recently rekindled old feelings for May, but now he faces fierce opposition in the way of his old friend and rival. However, a much larger threat looms on the horizon, making everyone involved make choices that will have rippling consequences that will affect innocent lives.
1. Chapter 1

_No, this isn't a plagiarism of a previously published, unfinished work. I published this story about a year ago on a different account whose email and password I cannot remember for the life of me. And, after having the passion to write, and continue, what I consider to be my most promising work, I feel a need to edit, revise, and fix the story to something a bit more realistic. I hope you enjoy, and I hope this fanfiction lightens up your day as fanfictions such as Two of a Kind, May's Crush, and countless others have done for myself. Sit back, relax, and I hope you enjoy reading my work._

_Adaptation_

The news doesn't surprise me anymore. Honestly. All you see everywhere is new disasters, every day, everywhere. It's almost overwhelming to see the tests that humanity faces every day. But somehow, we get through it all. We overcome it. The obstacles put in our way are just temporary, nothing permanent. And even when they do harm us, we grow. We change. We face the threat, and we adapt to it. I am Ash Ketchum, and this is how I adapted.

Chapter 1: Delia's Wedding

As I crawled over the hot, hard rocks of the desert, I noticed that there was a complete lack of wildlife. Nothing at all. We seemed to be alone. I looked back at Brock, and his expression told the same story as mine. The small, yellow rodent Pokemon known as Pikachu was hopped up on my shoulder, sweating profusely. This was the only time since receiving him that I had considered putting him back in his Pokeball. His sweat had the sleeve of my black t-shirt drenched and smelling horribly. I couldn't wait until we reached our destination.

Brock and I had met back up after I completed my quest in the Unova region. We'd been traveling for a good week now, mostly by tram and boat. This was one of the rare instances where we had to walk to get somewhere.

"Shouldn't this desert have run out about a mile ago?" Asked Brock, now questioning our map's accuracy. It was obviously not recent, with the date at the bottom saying "1985", but we figured it would be accurate enough to at least get where we were going.

"Must've had a lot of desertification in twenty-seven years," I muttered under my breath. Talking was wasting energy, which was what we needed most right now. "I knew we shouldn't have bought it from the shopkeeper. He was… odd." It was true, he was incredibly strange. He seemed very happy to get the map out of his own hands, even giving us a seventy-five percent discount. Buisness must've hit a low point if he was having sales that low.

"Look, let's just hope we have enough time to change into the wedding clothes." Brock said. Today was the day that my mother was getting married. She had met a man named Darren on a shopping trip while in Johto. They had been dating for almost a year, and Darren had proposed about six months ago. The wedding took a while to plan, especially since the wedding of Mom's dreams wasn't really financially feasable for our family. Darren mustered up the money, coming from a rich family, and paid for it all, much to Mom's delight.

I've never liked Darren. He is sarcastic and cruel, especially to me for whatever reason. Mom hates that we don't get along, but Darren is well-liked by her friends and the residents of Pallet Town, so I guess one opinion wasn't really enough to sway her. It wasn't the fact that she was marrying him that got to me; I was happy as could be for her, especially since she's never been married or even in a real relationship. It was the fact that Darren was going to be my legal father that I hated. I couldn't stand the man, let alone call him "Dad." As far as I'm concerned, I don't have a father. He left my mother when he found it she was pregnant. I don't ever want a father. It's just fine with me and Mom only.

It's not like I ever really see my mother anyway, what with me being gone all of the time. In the five years that I've been training and battling with Pokemon now, very little of that time has been spent with my mother, and that's probably my deepest regret. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if something happened to her while I was gone.

"Ash, look, there's the town!" Brock interrupted my thoughts, obviously exhausted. We made one last dash towards the city, while checking on the map for the church that Mom and Darren would be getting married at. Luckily, the church must've been constructed before the map was made, as we found it fairly quickly.

As I walked up to the rather small church, one thing was apparent; it hadn't been re-painted in years. Chips of brown stuck around the white paint, notifying to me that the church was built out of wood. Interesting that it had survived so long, as Celadon City, where the wedding was taking place, was prone to tornadoes and hurricanes. The city had a grassy theme to it, probably because of Erika, the local gym leader.

Erika was a strong trainer, one I respected more than most. She was a kind woman with a good heart, but a fierce mean streak during battles. Others have compared me to her at times, though I don't prefer grass Pokemon. They require a lot more care than other Pokemon, which is something a lot of people (like myself) simply don't have time for. Of course, being a gym leader, Erika probably has more time for those kind of things.

As I entered the church, I noticed that two tuxedos were thrown out onto a pew. I quickly realized that those were Brock and I's. Mom had prepared Brock with a dark black tux and brown tie. My tuxedo was the same color, only with a red tie. Personally, I thought they looked like a politician's daily wear and was very reluctant to put mine on. Brock seemed to like his, however, and rushed to the bathroom and threw it on immediately.

"Got to look nice," He told me. "You know, just in case Darren has any hot girl relatives, you know?" Typical of Brock. I laughed a bit, wondering wether or not it was a joke or if he was being completely serious. I assumed the worst, and went with the last option.

Mom hadn't invited my more recent traveling companions (mostly because she had never met them). Besides, they stayed in Unova, rather than come along with me to where ever I would go next. It didn't really bother me; they had their own dreams and ambitions, just like I did, but I found it sort of odd that Iris would miss my mother's wedding, invited or not. She was always into that kind of thing. I really don't know why. Weddings are some of the most boring things on earth.

After putting on my outfit, the wedding was about to start. After leaving the bathroom, I noticed that there were far more people here than I had originally thought there would be. A lot of Pallet Town citizens were there, to support Mom, and a few older friends of mine were there too. Mom had a tendency to become friends with my friends, so it didn't surprise me. I noticed that Dawn was sitting in the front row, squealing in delight. She waved at me, and I sheepishly waved back. I figured she would've came and adjusted my suit, her being the perfectionist she was. I walked away, and decided to take a seat in the second row next to Brock.

Brock looked incredibly dissapointed for whatever reason. "There's no hot girls!" He cried.

"Hot girls don't come to weddings, Brock. You have to go to a baby shower if you want hot girls." I should've known. I'd seen the pictures of my mother's baby shower, and some of the women there looked less than… modest, to say the least. Dad wasn't there, though. It would've meant more to me had no one showed up other than my father for the shower. All I ever wanted growing up was a father. I remember, every Christmas I would ask Santa (whom I still believed in at the time) for a Dad. Anyone would do. I guess I was always just missing that father figure in my life. I've wisened up since, and now that I _don't_ want a father, it seems that I'm going to get one.

The church door opened once again, and I looked back to see who would be gracing us with their presence. It happened to be none other than the one and only Gary Oak, a rival and on-again-off-again friend of mine. Seeing him seemed to rekindle feelings of friendship rather than feelings of competition, however, and I walked up to him to greet him.

"Hey, Gary!" I spoke to him. "Been a while since I've seen you around."

He turned around to look at me, and I noticed something different about him. Instead of wearing a purple t shirt like he usually did, he was wearing a black tuxedo with some sort of green flower attached to the pocket. He seemed far more gentleman-like than he had ever appeared before.

"Hi, Ash," He said to me with his signature raspy voice. "How are things going for you?"

"Decently, as of now." I remarked. "Pikachu is doing fine. I just left Unova and heard about the wedding last minute."

He looked at me with hard eyes and smiled a big grin.

"You don't seem to excited about this wedding, Ash. In fact, it looks as though you're attending a funeral. Why might that be?"

"Because it is a funeral." I conceded. "It's my happiness's funeral."

"Really?" He remarked with a slightly smug grin on his face. "I would've thought that would have died long ago. Like, somewhere around the tenth time I beat you in a Pokemon battle, eh Ash?"

I frowned a bit and punched him in the arm. "I significantly doubt you have beaten me ten times, which is a number I doubt you can even count to, Gary. How about we talk about a more significant number"? I remarked, this time with my own grin. "One. One Orange Islands League Championship, which happens to be one more you have from any league."

Just as he was about to say something, we saw a girl in a green dress walk out of the church's bathroom. Her chestnut hair feel gently to her shoulders and her brown eyes pierced the air with a sense of confidence about them. I knew after one look that it could only be May Maple, my friend and travelling companion for two years of my journey. She looked stunning in her outfit, and it was like seeing her in a whole new light.

I had thought romantically about her once or twice on my journey, but those were just passing thoughts, memoirs of a simpler time. Seeing her again seemed to bring some of those thoughts back from the grave of my conscience. She had an air of maturity about her that no other woman I have seen since carried. My mind began to race. I knew I had to approach her, to say something. It would just be common courtesy, I told myself. I knew, however, that this was something more.

I looked over to my right, and, of course, Gary was staring at her too, with a slightly different look in his eyes. He seemed to lick his lips a little bit, like a predator on the prowl. It unnerved me a bit, seeing someone looking at a woman like that. At May like that.

He poked me on the shoulder, forcing me to look at him.

"Yo, Ash." He remarked. "Who is that hot babe over there? The one in the green dress?"

I rolled my eyes, feeling annoyed and feeling slightly jealous.

"That 'hot babe' over there is my friend, May. I don't think she's your type, Gary." I remarked with squinted eyes pointed in his general direction.

"What, the hot, deep, personal type? I think she looks plenty fine to me, Ashy boy." He said with an air of arrogance about him.

"No, Gary. I mean the arrogant, conceited type."

He stared daggers at me, and then said to me, "You know what, Ash? I'm going to go talk to Mary-"

"May." I corrected him.

"Whatever," He said. "Either way, by the end of the night, she'll be swooning for me. You can mark that with the official Gary Oak seal of approval."

"Whatever, Gary." I muttered and walked away as he approached her. I couldn't hear the conversation they were having, but it seemed to be going all too well for my tastes. However, just as I was about to approach her, the sound of a loud bang approached my ears, knocking me to the ground in surprise. I looked around, seeing everyone in the church having a similar reaction. It seemed as though the loud "bang" I heard was the unmistakable sound of a bomb.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

After the smoke cleared out from the church, we started hearing screams outside, causing a mass panic in the church. I looked over at Pikachu, wondering if I'd have to take action and defend myself at my own mother's wedding. It was certainly different than how I expected the "happiest day of my mother's life" (as spoken by Darren) to go. I decided to allow Pikachu to hop up on my shoulder, when suddenly we saw Brock come running in from the bathroom, his tuxedo neatly on.

"What's going on?" He asked, confused. "I heard a really loud bang. Have you already popped the champagne?" I quickly motioned with my hand for him to come over to my position. He looked at me oddly and slowly made his way towards me.

"Ash, what's going on? Why does everyone look so afraid? This is supposed to be a joyous occasion!" He shouted, obviously trying to lift the spirits of everyone in the room. I grabbed him by his shoulder and pulled him close and started whispering the situation to him.

"Brock, we didn't pop the champagne. I think a bomb went off outside, or at least that's what it sounded like to me and everyone else within the damn two mile radius."

He gulped a bit.

"So that's what we're all afraid of…" He muttered, looking slightly embarrassed. "Heh… Sorry everybody. Won't happen again." He said to the crowd, most of whom were still hiding under pews.

He looked back at me and I could see unmistakable drops of sweat pouring down his face.

"Are you sure it was a bomb? One hundred and ten percent?" He asked me.

"I don't know, do you want me to go out there and ask them? Should I go outside and say 'Wow, was that a nice explosion or what! I wonder if a bomb caused that!"

"It's a nice idea, actually."

I rolled my eyes. I grabbed Pikachu and put him on my shoulder.

"Come on everybody, calm down. I'm going to walk outside, and I'll prove it was just a loud clap of thunder or something to the effect." I said. As soon as I opened the church doors, my worst fears were confirmed, as another explosion rocked the ground, forcing me back and slamming the door on my face.

The crowd collectively screamed once again, and it took none other than Gary Oak to actually make an attempt to come and help me up.

"Can you not go ten minutes without getting your ass kicked by something?" He asked me, slightly cheery and very unexpected, seeing as how a bomb just went off within our direct radius. I shoved him off of me and got up and crawled under a pew just like everyone else. I crammed Pikachu next to me, hoping to shield him with my own body should something happen.

The doors were forced open and I heard the unmistakable sound of boots walking through the church door. I opened my eyes and saw five men, all clad in black tuxedos of the expensive variety. One of them had a slight grey beard and a blue pin of a mushroom cloud on his jacket. It looked as though he meant business. His cohorts didn't exactly look to be the friendliest type either.

I looked over at May, sitting in a corner. She'd be an easy target in her bright green dress, and I motioned to her to get under a pew where she couldn't be as easily seen. I was about to release Pikachu, the only Pokemon I had brought with me. I looked at Brock, who was siting beside me and silently asked him if he had any Pokemon on him.

"No, not in particular. It would have been a good time to bring some, though." He replied.

I looked at Pikachu and ordered him to crawl out from the pew. I did the same, mimicking his slow movements. I decided I might as well stand up, as being stealthy wasn't going to get me anywhere.

"Uh… Hi, gentlemen." I started slowly. They turned their heads in my general direction, with only the grey-bearded leader turning to face me. "I was just wondering why you felt the need to detonate a bomb while a holy ceremony was going on."

The man smiled a bit, looking me in the eye.

"Think you're funny, don't you?"

"Not in particular, sir, no."

He spoke in an almost raspy tone. He reached into his pocket, retrieving a black Dusk Ball from its contents. He looked at me and started laughing.

"Come on boy, I can tell it's a fight you want. Why don't you give it to me, since you're so angry that I interrupted your wedding. I didn't know it was legal for children to take part in 'holy ceremonies' nowadays."

"It's not my wedding, but I'm still not the happiest." I looked at Pikachu and looked behind me, noticing that everyone in the church was staring at me. I enjoyed the moral support (or perhaps the questioning of my intelligence), but I felt as though they didn't seem to keen to help.

"Pikachu, get ready." I said. I watched as the small yellow creature started pushing voltage through his red cheeks, charging them to a bright pink color, showing that they had reached their maximum voltage.

The bearded man pressed the button on his ball and threw it a few feet in front of himself almost lackadaisically.

"Staraptor, your assistance is required." He released the flying type from it's spherical chamber, allowing it to start flapping its wings, hovering in the air over us. I pondered why he would choose a flying type when he knew very well that he would be facing an electric type. I looked over at the smug grin on his face, almost insulting me. No matter the type difference, I could tell that this wasn't going to be a cakewalk by any means.

"Perhaps I should do the formalities," He spoke in his commanding voice. "Staraptor, use Quick Attack."

The raptor Pokemon flew swiftly and gracefully through the air, heading straight for Pikachu. I had to react quickly, otherwise this battle would be over quickly due to the bird's speed.

"Pikachu, charge up your Volt Tackle, but don't accelerate towards it!" Pikachu released the electricity in his cheeks, covering himself in a protective barrier of electricity. Staraptor collided with the barrier, pushing it back and giving it a slight shock, turning its body yellow with pain and voltage. Staraptor quickly recovered, however, and went directly back to the skies.

"Now, Pikachu!" I said. "Use Thunderbolt until you can hit it!"

"Fly around the church's perches, Staraptor!" The mighty bird flew out of the way of the electric type attack with ease, making Pikachu look as though it was blindfolded and firing at it. The bird kept moving from perch to perch, confusing Pikachu and not allowing him the knowledge of his opponent's position.

"Now, Staraptor, Close Combat!" The bird Pokemon flew towards Pikachu, charging itself with majestic power.

"Pikachu, charge your volt tackle again!" I yelled, hoping he would be able to muster up enough energy to defend himself from the powerful attack.

Pikachu's cheeks glowed pink again and produced slightly less electricity covering his body than the last time he tried the defensive maneuver.

"Staraptor, slam your feet into the electricity!" The man shouted. His Pokemon halted as if by instinct and flipped its position, thrusting its legs into the voltage. However, he did not seem to be affected by the electricity this time. Pikachu looked stunned and dropped his defenses as he watched the bird Pokemon's talons glow with voltage.

"Now! Close Combat!" Staraptor let loose a hair raising screech and started slamming his charged feet into Pikachu, striking him in the chest with his feet and the head with his wings. Pikachu fell to the floor once the assault was over. He was dazed, but looked as though he could continue to fight.

[I]Staraptor obviously had to take some measure of damage from the attack.[/I] I thought to myself. If I could hit it with a powerful enough electric attack, I could potentially cripple it's flight abilities, allowing me to perform a finishing sequence.

"Staraptor, use Aerial Ace!" His trainer shouted to the bird. Staraptor started gathering speed, aiming his talons at Pikachu who had just recovered from the previous attack.

"Pikachu, use Thunder!" Pikachu looked through one of the gaps from where his Thunderbolt attacks had hit earlier and summoned a bolt of lightning from the sky, striking Staraptor with majestic fury.

"Chuuuuuu!" The small rodent yelled as it released all of it's energy into the attack that forced the bird down to the floor. I could now finish it swiftfully.

"Pikachu, use Volt Tackle." However, as soon as Pikachu started charging his attack, the man quickly pulled back his Dusk Ball, retracting Staraptor back inside.

"I'd say that's enough for now," He muttered to me, frowning. "You're a capable trainer. I think it is safe to say that our paths will cross again. I'll see you seen, Ash Ketchum." He smiled as he made his last statement and pulled a cylindrical object out of his coat pocket. It emitted a red light, and he pulled a pair of earplugs out of his pocket as well. His cohorts seemed to mimic his movements flawlessly.

"Enjoy your nap." He said to us before pressing the button on the device and sending us into a world filled with bright lights and loud, high pitched screaming.


End file.
